Star Trek at 50: The Best of All Worlds

Star Trek: The Next Generation entered its second season in 1988 as a proven success, with massive ratings and generating significant profit for Paramount. However, it had suffered a critical drubbing for most of its first season and behind the scenes the production of the series was a chaotic mess. The long-term future of the series was in doubt, and then every scriptwriter in Hollywood went on strike for six months.

The results were not great. Episodes for the second season had to go into production with only their first, early draft scripts completed (no rewrites allowed under the terms of the strike). One eleven-year-old script from the abandoned Phase II project had to be quickly recycled to serve as the season opener. Producer-writer Maurice Hurley had prepared an elaborate, multi-episode arc continuing from the end of Season 1 showing the Federation and Romulans collaborating to find the race responsible for the attacks in the Neutral Zone, which would have resulted in the unveiling of a new, terrifying insectoid race with a hive mind and superior technology, but this had to be jettisoned in favour of stand-alones.

Somehow, the second season ended up being okay and a much-needed improvement over the first, with several all-time classic episodes. The Measure of a Man was a brilliant morality tale of the kind Star Trek had traditionally excelled at making. Matters of Honour put Riker on board a Klingon Bird of Prey and gave us our first look at a Star Trek story from the POV of the supposed bad guys. But the season will forever be remembered for Q Who?, the episode that introduced the Borg. The original plan for a race of hive-minded insects proved too expensive to realise on screen, so Hurley replaced them with a race of cybernetically-enhanced humanoids, obsessed with absorbing technology from other races. The script also called for the Borg not to be defeated at the end of the episode, with the Enterprise only barely escaping from the Borg threat after Picard begged Q to save them. Patrick Stewart was not keen on this ending but later admitted he was wrong, with the episode winning immense critical acclaim.

However, Hurley had become frustrated at dealing with Gene Roddenberry, in particular when Roddenberry would break his own rules about "perfect" characters that other writers would get chewed out for. In addition, Patrick Stewart had become increasingly aware of the power he held as the star of the show and was volubly campaigning for Gates McFadden (fired at Hurley's direction) to return. These were power struggles that Hurley was increasingly unwilling to fight, so quit at the end of the second season. He did suggest his replacement, however: a young and talented writer named Michael Piller.

When Piller came on board at the start of the third season, he found a show that was still in chaos. With Hurley gone, Rick Berman had acquiesced to Patrick Stewart's demands and Gates McFadden had come back onto the show. But a large swathe of writers had departed and Piller now had to rebuild his writing team from scratch. He assembled a mixture of more experienced hands like Ira Steven Behr and fresh-faced youngsters like Ronald D. Moore and also laid down a series of rules. One of his most far-reaching and successful was the idea that the show was about the regular characters, not the guest stars. The weekly guest stars were there to flesh out stories about the regular, not vice versa. This idea helped strengthen the scripts. Piller was also able to take advantage of Roddenberry's declining involvement in the show to push through scripts based more around conflict and drama.

Piller proved to be an able showrunner and provided tremendous stability and direction, even in the most chaotic of conditions. The most heavily-rewritten and expensive script of the season, which people were writing off as a confusing mess at the script stage, became Yesterday's Enterprise, which met with blanket critical praise. Ron Moore was allowed bring Star Trek to the Klingon homeworld for the very first time in Sins of the Father and broke a cardinal rule of Trek by leaving the story unresolved at the end. The story of Lt. Worf and his struggles with his Klingon heritage would span not just the rest of The Next Generation but expand into the spin-off series as well. Numerous other classics dot the season, but it was the finale that completely transformed the fortunes of the franchise. The Best of Both Worlds saw the Borg return in full force, cutting a swathe of destruction across Federation space before, in a cliffhanger ending, kidnapping Captain Picard and transforming him into one of them.

The episode electrified audiences, with both fans and casual viewers eagerly debating what was going to happen next. Patrick Stewart was taken aback to be in his car and have people yelling "Locutus!" at him from neighbouring vehicles. The fourth season opened with a strong run of episodes even after the cliffhanger was resolved, and the show never looked back. Shortly after this the Cardassians were introduced, and a compelling, multi-episode storyline unfolded over the entire season which eventually ended with the Klingon Empire being plunged into civil war by the machinations of the Romulans. The show overtook the episode count of the original Star Trek and, at the start of the fifth season (around the time Gene Roddenberry sadly passed away), passed 100 episodes. More great episodes followed, the producers started talking about spin-offs and a movie and, most impressively, other science fiction shows started appearing on TV. These started with "soft" SF series which had minor SF elements wedded to more standard forms of storytelling, such as with Quantum Leap and The X-Files, but by the end of Trek's run other space operas had started appearing, such as the short-lived Space Rangers and the much more successful Babylon 5.

Star Trek: The Next Generation concluded in early 1994 after seven seasons and 178 episodes. The show had surpassed the original series in popularity and critical acclaim and the cast and crew were keen to take the show to the next level: by following the original crew onto the big screen.

Trailer for Neil Gaiman's LIKELY STORIES

Starting on 26 May, Sky Arts will be broadcasting a four-part TV series based on short stories by Neil Gaiman under the title Likely Stories.

The stories being adapted are "Foreign Parts", "Feeders & Eaters", "Closing Time" and "Looking for the Girl". The four parts have been scored by Pulp frontman Jarvis Cocker, who has released a soundtrack EP as well.

STAR WARS EPISODE VIII title leaked...maybe

The name of Star Wars Episode VIII, which is currently filming, has allegedly leaked. You can find the title after the jump. Clearly, SPOILERS ahead.

First teaser trailer for new STAR TREK series

CBS have unveiled the first teaser trailer for the new Star Trek series...which hasn't actually started shooting yet.

So we get the new logo and confirmation that it's coming to CBS and CBS All Access.

According to credible rumours, the new series will be in an anthology format with each season taking place with a different cast at different moments in the Star Trek timeline. Apparently this will be the original or prime timeline as CBS does not have the rights to use the JJ Abrams timeline without making a new deal. Allegedly, the first season is taking place somewhere in the seventy-one year gap between Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country (and Star Trek: Generations, which takes place the same year) and the start of Star Trek: The Next Generation. Apparently the first season, which will be between 10 and 13 episodes long, will be heavily serialised and set on a starship, but not on an Enterprise.

None of this has been concerned, but the "NEW CREWS" (plural) part of the teaser does hint that the anthology idea may be spot-on.

The new series is being helmed by Trek old-hands Alex Kurtzman (who worked on the Abrams movies), Nicholas Meyer (the director/co-writer of Star Trek II and VI, and co-writer of IV) and Bryan Fuller (who worked as a writer on Deep Space Nine and writer-producer on Voyager). No casting information has been announced yet. The show is slated to begin shooting in August or September in Toronto and will debut on CBS in January 2017.

No subtitle has been announced. If it is an anthology, it may follow the American Horror Story precedent of having a different title each season. If it doesn't, things may get rather confusing very quickly, as people discuss Star Trek (2017), Star Trek (1966) and Star Trek (2009). Seriously, I'd accept Star Trek Colon Insert Subtitle Here, Star Trek or Star Trek: Thingy at this juncture.

Another excerpt from Scott Bakker's GREAT ORDEAL

A second excerpt from Scott Bakker's The Great Ordeal has been released, this time via Pat's Fantasy Hotlist.

This excerpt catches up with Drusas Achamian and Mimara as they approach Ishual, the fortress-home of the Dunyain and the birthplace of Ansurimbor Kellhus. This is a pretty revelatory excerpt (the Dune influences can be seen here as well), ending on one hell of a cliffhanger.

The Great Ordeal will be released on 5 July in the US and 29 September in the UK.

Happy 20th Anniversary to A SONG OF ICE AND FIRE (more or less)

This year marks two important milestones for George R.R. Martin fans: the 20th anniversary of A Song of Ice and Fire appearing in print and the 25th anniversay of George starting to write the first book.

George started writing A Game of Thrones in the summer of 1991. The novel was published on 6 August 1996. However, that wasn't the first time any Song of Ice and Fire material appeared in print. That honour came three months earlier when his publishers started rolling out various excerpts and outtakes from the novel.

The first thing to appear was a sample booklet from HarperCollins Voyager, George's UK publishers. This booklet contained the first 124 pages from the novel (running up roughly to the end of the chapter where Robert tells Eddard about Daenerys's wedding) and was published separately in the UK for 99p (but now retails online for £150!). It was sold at bookstores across the country as a way of whetting the appetite for the book. My three local bookshops cunningly positioned the booklets next to the hardcover displays for the seventh Wheel of Time novel, which was released on 15 May 1996, to get some cross-series fantasy promotion going on.

In the United States, Bantam ran an excerpt in Asimov's Science Fiction in July 1996 (published in June). This excerpt was huge. Dubbed Blood of the Dragon, it contained all of the Daenerys chapters from A Game of Thrones assembled into one self-contained novella. Blood of the Dragon went on to win the Best Novella prize at the 1997 Hugo Awards, making this the only literary Hugo the series has received so far (Game of Thrones has won three for Best Dramatic Presentation, however). A Storm of Swords got the same treatment in 2000 when the Daenerys chapters were pulled out to form a novella called Path of the Dragon, although this didn't win a Hugo.

So there you go. Although the anniversary of A Game of Thrones itself isn't until August, when we'll see some fancy new editions hit the shelves and likely some more celebration of the fact, A Song of Ice and Fire has now been in print for more than twenty years.

Scott Lynch's THORN OF EMBERLAIN confirmed for September release

Gollancz have confirmed that they will be releasing Scott Lynch's The Thorn of Emberlain, the fourth volume of The Gentleman Bastard series, on 22 September this year.

This is a slight delay from the July 2016 date originally mooted, but Gollancz explained they made the change to better coordinate marketing activities as Scott will be in the UK that month for Fantasycon.

The previous volumes in the series were The Lies of Locke Lamora (2006), Red Seas Under Red Skies (2007) and The Republic of Thieves (2013). Three further volumes are anticipated to bring the series to a conclusion: The Ministry of Necessity, The Mage and the Master Spy (although this title may change) and Inherit the Night.

So, are the Targaryens immune to fire?

This is a question that has come up regularly in the twenty years since A Game of Thrones was first published but even moreso since the advent of the TV series five years ago. The events of this week's episode, Book of the Stranger, have raised the question yet again, so it bears some revisiting.

As usual, we have to remember that there is a distinct and separate book canon and a distinct and separate TV canon. The two stories take place in distinct fictional universes and, although the TV show draws on the book storyline, it is not the same story and can differ from it, sometimes subtly and sometimes quite wildly. What is canon in the books may have no bearing on the TV show and vice versa.


In the book canon

In the Song of Ice and Fire novels, the Targaryens are not immune to fire as a matter of course. Long exposure to living in a land dominated by volcanic activity, with the city of Valyria itself built around rivers of lava, may have given the Valyrians - including the Targaryens - a very moderate, increased resistance to heat. But that's all. The difference is not massive. As George R.R. Martin says:

"It gives me a chance to clear up a common misconception. TARGARYENS ARE NOT IMMUNE TO FIRE! The birth of Dany's dragons was unique, magical, wondrous, a miracle. She is called The Unburnt because she walked into the flames and lived. But her brother sure as hell wasn't immune to that molten gold."
"So she won't be able to do it again?"
"Probably not."

In addition:

"Lastly, some fans are reading too much into the scene in GAME OF THRONES where the dragons are born -- which is to say, it was never the case that all Targaryens are immune to all fire at all times."

We see ourselves that Viserys was not immune to the molten heat of the pot of gold dumped over his head by Khal Drogo in Vaes Dothrak, and during the Dance of Dragons several Targaryens burned to death in dragonback battles.

So the question arises, how did Daenerys survive the funeral pyre in Lhazar at the end of A Game of Thrones? The simple answer is magic. Mirri Maz Duur had already used magic to save Khal Drogo's life (if only as a vegetable), drawing from the life of Daenerys's unborn child. When Daenerys burned Mirri Maz Duur alive on the funeral pyre, along with Drogo's body and the three dragon eggs, it created a magical catalyst that allowed the dragon eggs to hatch (the lack of blood sacrifice may be why the previous Targaryen eggs had not hatched, although this doesn't explain the failure at Summerhall where many lives were lost trying to hatch eggs). It might be that just killing Duur with the eggs and fire present was enough, or that Daenerys's act of faith (stepping into the flames) furthered things along, or the magical influence of the comet may have helped. An additional theory is that Mirri Maz Duur herself was in the middle of trying to work some black magic to try to escape and this backfired and allowed the eggs to hatch and Daenerys to emerge unharmed.

George's commentary on the matter is clear: this was a one-off, magical event that will probably never happen again, unless similar circumstances arise.

Some readers dispute this, pointing out that Daenerys survives the conflagration in Daznak's Pit at the end of A Dance with Dragons. This is true, but Daenerys is wounded during the incident, suffering blisters and pain from the heat. Daenerys got lucky (or Drogon was careful not to hurt her), avoiding the flames directly but still suffering after-effects.

So the answer to this question is clear: in the books Daenerys is not immune to fire at all times and can still be harmed by it.

In the TV canon

The TV series Game of Thrones leaves considerably less room to argue. In the first episode of the series, Winter is Coming, Daenerys gets into a scalding-hot bath and doesn't bat an eyelid. In A Golden Crown she picks up one of her dragon eggs after placing it in a brazier for several minutes and is unharmed. When her handmaid Irri touches the same egg, she burns her hands. In Valar Morghulis Daenerys is chained up whilst her dragons breath fire around her to kill the warlock Pyat Pree. The warlock is incinerated but Daenerys is completely unfazed by it.

Finally, in this week's episode Daenerys overturns four braziers in the Temple of the Dhosh Khaleen in Vaes Dothrak and burns the temple to the ground whilst she is standing in the middle of it. Afterwards she walks out completely unharmed, having apparently made the conscious decision to use her flame-immunity to cow the Dothraki into following her.

The Inside the Episode video that HBO posts for each episode is also fairly clear on the matter: this is an ability that Daenerys has at all times. So again the answer is clear: in the TV series Daenerys is immune to fire at all times and cannot be harmed by it.

The question of "Why?" is an interesting one. Viserys clearly was not immune to fire when he was killed in A Golden Crown. It may be something in the consistency of the molten gold that allowed it to kill him, but more likely the immunity to fire is something unique to Daenerys. If you believe that she is the Prince Who Was Promised rather than Jon Snow (or if they both are, somehow), it may have something more to do with that. It will be interesting to see if the show expands on this or leaves it more open to interpretation.

The next question is "How will this go down in the books?" We'll have to wait for The Winds of Winter to find out, but the situation in the books is already different: Daenerys had Drogon by her side when the Dothraki arrived, so the situation will play out in a different manner.

Star Trek at 50: The USS Enterprise (NCC-1701-C)

The Ambassador-class USS Enterprise (registry number NCC-1701-C), built by the United Federation of Planets circa 2329-32. The ship was commissioned and launched in 2332 under the command of Captain Rachel Garrett, its only commanding officer. The Enterprise-C was lost at the Battle of Narendra III in 2344, having served for twelve years. It was destroyed in battle with four Romulan warbirds. Its destruction whilst defending a Klingon outpost paved the way for the Klingon-Federation Alliance.

Class History

Circa 2290, Starfleet began mass-production of the Excelsior class of starship. Considerably larger, faster and more powerful than the Constitution class (which was then phased out of service and retired), the Excelsior became the mainstay of Starfleet for almost a century, its spaceframe proving highly adaptable and easily upgraded to deal with new mission requirements and threats. The long lifespan of the Excelsior may have also been helped by the relative period of peace that descended following the Khitomer Accords of 2293: the Federation and the Klingon Empire entered into a more fruitful and cooperative relationship, which also seems to have discouraged aggression by other powers such as the Romulans, Tholians and Gorn.

By the late 2310s, however, the Federation saw the need to begin development of a new heavy starship design which could replace the Excelsior class. Increased contact with the Cardassian Union, previously a smaller power which had now launched a series of aggressive moves into the surrounding systems and in 2319 launched a devastating invasion of Bajor, may have been one reason for this decision. Gradually decreasing contact with the Romulans after 2314 and the fear that the Romulans were consolidating and rebuilding their forces may have also spurred a renewed period of Starfleet development.

That said, the Federation did not want to upset the balance of power in the Alpha Quadrant and was keen that this new ship's primary role would be peaceful, devoted to scientific research and diplomacy over combat. The new class was thus dubbed the Ambassador. The first ship of the class appears to have been launched in the late 2320s. Several more ships were laid down and under construction when word arrived in 2329 that the USS Enterprise (NCC-1701-B) had been lost in deep space after thirty-six years in service. The decision was made that one of the new ships would be dubbed Enterprise in honour of her service and the ships that came before her.

By the 2340s several dozen Ambassador class starships were in service and performing with distinction. Despite their formidable qualities, the ships appear to have not satisfied the need for a replacement for the Excelsior: there was rarely a situation which an Excelsior couldn't handle which an Ambassador could, and the continuing upgradeability of the Excelsior class simply made it more economical in terms of resources and construction time. It appears that by the mid-2340s the decision had been made to abandon the Ambassador class design in favour of an vastly more ambitious scheme: the Galaxy Project.

Operational History

The USS Enterprise (NCC-1701-C) was launched in 2332 under the command of Captain Rachel Garrett. One of the youngest Starfleet captains commissioned since James T. Kirk, Garrett was noted for her toughness, excellent command judgement and canny command skills. Over the next dozen years the Enterprise-C dealt with dozens of tense diplomatic encounters, difficult science missions and several military engagements, from which the ship always emerged victorious. During this period the Romulans, who had become more reclusive, began a new period of aggressive skirmishing with both the Federation and Klingon Empire. The Klingons were also engaged in an eighteen-year period of conflict with the Cardassian Union which the Federation also refused to get involved with. An apparently tepid response by the Federation to these threats angered the Klingons, who, having recovered from the destruction of Praxis fifty years earlier, had begun having second thoughts about their new peaceful relationship with the Federation.

This brinkmanship resulted in the Battle of Narendra III in 2344. Four Romulan warbirds launched a direct assault on the Klingon colony at Narendra III, inflicting severe damage on the planet. The colony sent out a request for aid, which the Enterprise-C responded to. Although the ship was outgunned it nevertheless committed to the battle, inflicting severe damage on the Romulan vessels. Halfway through the engagement the damaged Enterprise-C suddenly underwent a spontaneous regeneration of its shields and weapon systems, suggesting that the Federation had developed some kind of new weapons technology, but the matter remains classified. Despite its valour, the Enterprise-C was destroyed with all hands. The ferocity of the attack had destroyed some of the Romulan ships and damaged the rest so badly they were forced to withdraw, saving the outpost from destruction (Star Trek: The Next Generation: Yesterday's Enterprise and Redemption, Part II).

Although the loss of the Enterprise-C was a serious blow to Starfleet, it had a remarkable effect. The Klingon Empire honoured the crew of the ship and convinced the Federation to renew diplomatic and military pressure on the Romulan Star Empire to cease its warmongering. This resulted in a brief tripartite peace agreement between the Federation, Romulans and Klingons. However, this lasted just two years before the Romulans broke the agreement and launched an attack on Khitomer in 2346. The ferocity of the attack stunned both the Federation and Klingons and almost resulted in war. This was only averted when the Federation instead found itself in a war with the Cardassian Union and the Klingons were distracted by internal politics. The Romulans, perhaps aware that they had nearly triggered a conflict they could not win, retreated entirely behind their borders for the next twenty years.

As usual, Starfleet moved to name a new starship Enterprise. However, aware of the Galaxy Project they decided not to name a new ship immediately and hold back until that project reached fruition.


Ship Overview

The Enterprise-C was an Ambassador class starship, launched in 2332 and destroyed in 2344. It was an early-model Ambassador, featuring less advanced weapons and sensors than the models that entered service in the 2340s and 2350s like the USS Excalibur (probably the most famous ship of the class after the Enterprise), but still outclassing anything else in the Federation, Klingon or Romulan arsenals.

The Enterprise-C was 524 metres (1,720 feet) long, 283 metres wide (928.5 feet) and 102 metres (334.6 feet) tall. It had at least 700 crew, although some ships of the class by the late 24th Century may have had closer to a thousand. The ship had 33 decks and was the first class to use phase "strips" rather than the "banks" containing multiple phaser cannons used on previous designs. These strips allowed phaser fire to be directed from anywhere on their surface, massively expanding the angles of fire the ship could employ. This was tremendously useful when it came to handling multiple attackers simultaneously.

Andrew Probert's concept art for the Enterprise-C from ST:TNG's first season. He envisaged the ship as an evolutionary stage between the Excelsior and Ambassador classes.

Behind the Scenes

When Star Trek: The Next Generation entered production in 1987, the set of the meeting room was decorated with stylised versions of the previous ships to bear the name. It was assumed that the Enterprise-B would be an Excelsior-class starship, but the design of the Enterprise-C was unknown. Andrew Probert, who had designed the Enterprise-D and worked on the movies, created a sort of stumpy version of the Galaxy-class, which also drew on elements from the Excelsior as a kind of halfway house between the two. He also drew a colour sketch of what he imagined the ship looked like.

During the production of Season 3 two years later, it was decided to film a script called Yesterday's Enterprise. In this script the Enterprise-C is flung twenty-two years into the future and creates an alternate timeline in which the Federation is at war with the Klingons. The ship has to be sent back to restore the timeline. Rick Sternbach was tasked with designing the ship in a hurry and on a budget, so was able to just tweak Probert's design. Model-maker Greg Jein produced the final ship model for $10,000. This was a lot to spend on the model for a new ship, but it was helped by the fact that the studio had given the team a budget hike for the episode as it was going to air in a ratings "sweeps" week.

Yesterday's Enterprise was a massive, smash-hit success. It would go on to be named several times as the best-ever episode of the entire Star Trek franchise (although today it generally shares that honour with The Inner Light, The Best of Both Worlds, City on the Edge of Forever, In the Pale Moonlight and Far Beyond the Stars).

The Ambassador-class model was redetailed and altered to appear in subsequent episodes such as Redemption and the Deep Space Nine pilot, Emissary, but made no subsequent appearance. No CGI shooting model was ever built, leading fans to conclude that the Ambassador never fulfilled its original purpose of filling in between the Excelsior and Galaxy classes, with the Excelsior simply proving a much more successful and longer-lasting design than anyone had ever envisaged.

STAR WARS: ROGUE ONE images and information (SPOILERS)

Some publicity images and information from the forthcoming movie Star Wars: Rogue One have leaked onto the Internet from publishers involved in licensing tie-in material for the film.

This information includes a more complete cast list for the film:

• Felicity Jones as Jyn Erso
• Diego Luna as Captain Cassian Andor of the Rebel Alliance
• Riz Ahmed as Bodhi Rook, a Rebel soldier
• Ben Mendelsohn as Director Krennic of the Galactic Empire
• Donnie Yen as Chirrut, a "spiritual" warrior
• Jiang Wen as Baze, a freelance assassin
• Mads Mikkelsen as Galen Erso, Jyn's father
• Alan Tudyk as K-250, an enforcer droid
• Jonathan Aris as Senator Jebel
• Genevieve O'Reilly as Mon Mothma

The names of Forest Whitaker, Alistair Petrie and Eunice Olumide's characters remain unknown, whilst two "fierce warrior" alien characters named Pao and Bistan are identified but with no actors linked to them. The leak also appears to support earlier rumours that Darth Vader will appear in the film in at least a brief and limited capacity, likely played by Spencer Wilding (Game of Thrones) and voiced by James Earl Jones.

The information also confirms that we will see X-wings and Y-wings in the film, but also a previously unknown fighter type known as the U-wing and a hitherto unseen TIE model called the TIE Striker, which appears to have been optimised for atmospheric combat.

Star Wars: Rogue One will be released on 16 December 2016.